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Teaching is sometimes about taking risks. Sometimes a teacher can take advantage of a special day of awareness to make unique connections to the curriculum. The National Day of Silence is one opportunity to take a risk in the classroom.
For a US History class, the Day of Silence Lesson lesson could be tied in with reform movements, checks and balances (hate crime legislation, same sex civil unions), or it could simply be used as an enrichment activity.
To create an activity that has the greatest impact, like any great lesson, a teacher needs to prepare. For my lesson, I did not speak to the students in my classes. I am a vocal teacher. This was a shock to many of my students and a challenge for me.
Here is the class order:

  1. Powerpoint explanation.
  2. Read a Rose for Charlie quietly.
  3. Reflect about the events. Remember this happened in New England not to long ago and students are harassed daily in America and perhaps our own community because of ignorance and a lack of acceptance.
  4. Complete the writing assignment.

1. Powerpoint Presentation: If you have the ability, project a powerpoint on the board to the class. (This also is an opportunity to answer questions by typing responses.) The slides were pretty basic. I will include a few slides:
1st slide: Happy National Day of Silence: US History Social Reform
Reform movement slides: Hate crimes, minimum wage, child labor, texting and driving, etc.
Day of Silence Questions Slide:

People are treated differently based on sexual orientation. True of False?

People are beaten up as a result of sexual orientation. True or False

People are KILLED as a result of sexual orientation. True or False
Video Clip of Matthew Sheppard Murder: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/27134308#27134308
Silent Reading Slide: Read A Rose for Charlie from the Teaching Tolerance, Us and Them Booklet. Teaching Tolerance is a great resource for all teachers.
2. Silent Reading: This promotes the concept of a Day of Silence and also requires the students to really make a connection to the story.
Visit: http://machadok.faculty.mjc.edu/ARose4Charlie.pdf for a copy of the article. Teaching Tolerance also has resources that are helpful. Visit http://www.tolerance.org/a-rose-for-charlie.
3. Silent Reflection and Writing: This is perhaps the most important part of the lesson. Students will write a 1st person narrative following the directions on the worksheet. Students can choose from three different perspectives. Most end up choosing Charlie’s perspective. (A teacher can choose to limit the options to Charlie.)
Below is the student worksheet:

A Day of Silence: A Rose For Charlie (p. 113 – 119)

Today is the national day of silence for support of individuals who are treated differently based on sexual orientation. As part of this event, we are going to complete an activity related to this event. You will notice I am not talking today and am using the google.docs powerpoint presentation.
The class order:

  1. Powerpoint explanation.
  2. Read a Rose for Charlie quietly.
  3. Reflect about the events. Remember this happened in New England not to long ago and students are harassed daily in Massachusetts maybe even Hanover because of ignorance and a lack of acceptance.
  4. Complete the writing assignment.

You have read the story. Now write a 1st hand account (you are the person “I,” “we,” “me”) of the events. This is creative writing. You will need to fill in the events that are not presented in the story. Assume the role of one of the individuals in the story. Choose from the following perspectives.

  1. Charlie or friend
  2. One of the three high school boys
  3. One of the three high school girls

The story should be detailed, descriptive, and contain dialogue. The narrative should include the following:

  1. The events before the confrontation
  2. The confrontation
  3. The events following the confrontation / death (If you choose Charlie it can be a reflection from heaven (?) looking down)